The generalization complexity measure for continuous input data

We introduce in this work an extension for the generalization complexity measure to continuous input data. The measure, originally defined in Boolean space, quantifies the complexity of data in relationship to the prediction accuracy that can be expected when using a supervised classifier like a neural network, SVM, and so forth. We first extend the original measure for its use with continuous functions to later on, using an approach based on the use of the set of Walsh functions, consider the case of having a finite number of data points (inputs/outputs pairs), that is, usually the practical case. Using a set of trigonometric functions a model that gives a relationship between the size of the hidden layer of a neural network and the complexity is constructed. Finally, we demonstrate the application of the introduced complexity measure, by using the generated model, to the problem of estimating an adequate neural network architecture for real-world data sets.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2014/815156publishedVersionFil: Gómez, Iván. Universidad de Málaga. Departamento de Lenguajes y Ciencias de la Computación; España.Fil: Franco, Leonardo. Universidad de Málaga. Departamento de Lenguajes y Ciencias de la Computación; España.Fil: Jerez, José M. Universidad de Málaga. Departamento de Lenguajes y Ciencias de la Computación; España.Fil: Cannas, Sergio Alejandro. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía y Física; Argentina.Fil: Osenda, Omar. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Matemática, Astronomía y Física; Argentina.Otras Ciencias de la Computación e Informació

Phosphogypsum waste lime as a promising substitute of commercial limes : a rheological approach

This paper presents the rheological properties of three types of lime putty, specifying the influence of their origin. The study aims to compare a special lime putty prepared from phosphogypsum with a commercial lime powder and an aged lime putty. The results obtained in terms of chemical composition, crystalline structure, grain size and rheological characterization, (linear viscoelasticity, shear rate and time-dependent flow behaviour) are presented in the study. Putties studied present a similar rheological response, which mainly depends on the particle size and water content. Lower values of the linear viscoelastic functions and viscosity were found for the phosphogypsum lime putty, in agreement with the higher particle size. Transient flow tests reveal a predominant elastic response with no significant shear-induced structural perturbations. However, either a thickening phenomenon over time, i.e. rheopexy, favoured at low shear rates, or a viscosity decrease, i.e. thixotropy, favoured at high shear rates, was observed.The authors would like to thank the aid of CITIUS at the University of Seville for the use of their laboratories for the characterization analyses. A.M.B.-L. has received a Ph.D. Research Grant from the Ministerio de Education, Cultura y Deporte (FPU16/03697)

Characterization of ripe fruit epidermis-specific transcription factors in strawberry

Transcriptome changes during strawberry fruit ripening have been previously reported using either complete fruits or achenes (actual fruits) and receptacles (fleshy part) separately. In order to perform a more detailed study, we have performed a tissue- and stage-specific transcriptome analysis in receptacles of Fragaria vesca fruits, allowing us to infer Gene Regulatory Networks (GRN) in each tissue and stage. In the study, we have focused on the epidermis at the ripe stage, since it plays an important role in defense, as it is the external cell layer in direct contact with the environment, and, in contrast to receptacles of the commercial species, it is the only part of the fruit that accumulates anthocyanins. MapMan analysis of the GRN in ripe epidermis showed that wax and flavonoid biosynthesis were significantly overrepresented functions. Three out of the several TFs found among the main hubs in this GRN were selected to study their biological role, one of them belonging to the MYB family, and two bHLH genes. Protein interaction assays revealed that the MYB protein physically interacts with the two bHLHs, leading to the subcellular relocalization from the cytoplasm to the nucleus in one of them. DAP-seq analyses showed that the bHLH TFs do not bind DNA by themselves, but that genes involved in cuticle formation and flavonoid biosynthesis are among the MYB targets, which were validated by a transactivation assay using the Luciferase/Renilla system. Consistently, MYB-overexpressing stable lines exhibited an upregulation of genes related to cuticle and wax biosynthesis in ripe fruits, and an accumulation of higher amounts of epicuticular waxes in young leaves compared to the WT. We are currently establishing RNAi and CRISPR lines for these three ripe-epidermis specific TFs to further investigate their biological role and performing analyses to understand the effect on gene expression of the interaction between them.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Characterization of ripe fruit epidermis-specific transcription factors in strawberry

Transcriptome changes during strawberry fruit ripening have been previously reported using either complete fruits or achenes (actual fruits) and receptacles (fleshy part) separately. In order to perform a more detailed study, we have performed a tissue- and stage-specific transcriptome analysis in receptacles of Fragaria vesca fruits, allowing us to infer Gene Regulatory Networks (GRN) in each tissue and stage. In the study, we have focused on the epidermis at the ripe stage, since it plays an important role in defense, as it is the external cell layer in direct contact with the environment, and, in contrast to receptacles of the commercial species, it is the only part of the fruit that accumulates anthocyanins. MapMan analysis of the GRN in ripe epidermis showed that wax and flavonoid biosynthesis were significantly overrepresented functions. Three out of the several TFs found among the main hubs in this GRN were selected to study their biological role, one of them belonging to the MYB family, and two bHLH genes. Protein interaction assays revealed that the MYB protein physically interacts with the two bHLHs, leading to the subcellular relocalization from the cytoplasm to the nucleus in one of them. DAP-seq analyses showed that the bHLH TFs do not bind DNA by themselves, but that genes involved in cuticle formation and flavonoid biosynthesis are among the MYB targets, which were validated by a transactivation assay using the Luciferase/Renilla system. Consistently, MYB-overexpressing stable lines exhibited an upregulation of genes related to cuticle and wax biosynthesis in ripe fruits, and an accumulation of higher amounts of epicuticular waxes in young leaves compared to the WT. We are currently establishing RNAi and CRISPR lines for these three ripe-epidermis specific TFs to further investigate their biological role and performing analyses to understand the effect on gene expression of the interaction between them.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tec

Characterization of ripe fruit epidermis-specific transcription factors in strawberry

The epidermis is the external cell layer in direct contact with the environment, and it plays essential biological roles. Transcriptome analysis (RNA-seq) of Fragaria vesca fruit receptacles at four ripening stages (green, white, turning and red) and of different tissue types of receptacles (pith, vascular bundles, cortex and epidermis) at two ripening stages (green and red) allowed us to infer tissue- and stage-specific Gene Regulatory Networks (GRN). Due to the potential role of the epidermis in defense and in the differential anthocyanin accumulation pattern that shows at the ripe stage of F. vesca fruits (the skin is red, while the inner part is white), we have focused on the GRN of the ripe epidermis. In this study, we aim at the functional characterization of two transcription factors (TFs) that constituted the main hubs of this GRN: a MYB-like gene, and a member of the NAC family of TFs. A MapMan analysis of the genes constituting the GRN in ripe epidermis showed that wax and flavonoid biosynthesis were significantly overrepresented functions in this tissue at the ripe stage. Using the Luciferase/Renilla (Luc/Ren) system, the interaction of the MYB and NAC TFs with their wax-related putative targets was validated. To gain insight into the target genes of these two TFs, we mapped the genome-wide binding sites using DAP-seq analyses. Consistently, MYB bound to a set of genes involved in cuticle formation and flavonoid biosynthesis, while a number of genes involved in solute transport were enriched among the NAC targets. Currently, we are generating CRISPR/Cas9 mutant lines to functionally characterize these two TFs. Furthermore, we are performing protein interaction assays to decipher whether the MYB and NAC TFs interact with each other and with other TFs from the red epidermis GRN.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Role of ripe fruit epidermis-specific FvMYB29-FvbHLH transcription factor complexes in strawberry

Transcriptome changes during strawberry fruit ripening have been previously reported. However, we have identified genes with tissue- and stage-specific patterns in the receptacles of Fragaria vesca coupling LCM with RNA-seq analysis. In the study, we have focused on the Gene Regulatory Network at the epidermis in ripe fruits, since it is the external cell layer in direct contact with the environment and it plays an important role in defense, and, in contrast to receptacles of the commercial species, it is the only part of the fruit that accumulates anthocyanins. Consistently, a GO functional analysis of this GRN showed enrichment in genes involved in flavonoid and wax biosynthesis. Three out of the several ripe epidermis-specific TFs were selected to study their biological role, one of them belonging to the MYB family (FvMYB29), and two bHLH-like proteins (FvbHLH22 and FvbHLH67). Protein interaction assays revealed that the FvMYB29 protein physically interacts with the two FvbHLHs. Genome-wide binding sites of these TFs were identified by DAP-seq, revealing that genes involved in flavonoid biosynthesis and cuticle composition are among the FvMYB29 targets, which was validated by transactivation assays. However, transactivation assays with different combinations of FvMYB29 and the two FvbHLH showed that the latter modulates the activation of transcription of the targets. Consistently with the role of FvMYB29 in the cuticle formation, stable FvMYB29-overexpressing lines showed a misregulation of genes related to cutin and wax biosynthesis in ripe fruits and leaves. Furthermore, FvMYB29-overexpressing fruits presented cuticular nanoridges. On the other hand, young leaves of FvMYB29-overexpression lines showed denser epicuticular waxes in the abaxial surface and an alteration in wax composition but compared to the control. All these results support the role of the FvMYB29-FvbHLH TF complex as an important regulator of cuticle structure in F. vesca.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Arabidopsis SWC4 Binds DNA and Recruits the SWR1 Complex to Modulate Histone H2A.Z Deposition at Key Regulatory Genes

Deposition of the H2A.Z histone variant by the SWR1 complex (SWR1-C) in regulatory regions of specific loci modulates transcription. Characterization of mutations in Arabidopsis thaliana homologs of yeast SWR1-C has revealed a role for H2A.Z exchange in a variety of developmental processes. Nevertheless, the exact composition of plant SWR1-C and how it is recruited to target genes remains to be established. Here we show that SWC4, the Arabidopsis homolog of yeast SANT domain protein Swc4/Eaf2, is a DNA-binding protein that interacts with SWR1-C subunits. We demonstrate that the swc4-1 knockout mutant is embryo-lethal, while SWC4 RNAi knockdown lines display pleiotropic phenotypic alterations in vegetative and reproductive traits, including acceleration of flowering time, indicating that SWC4 controls post-embryonic processes. Transcriptomic analyses and genome-wide profiling of H2A.Z indicate that SWC4 represses transcription of a number of genes, including the floral integrator FT and key transcription factors, mainly by modulating H2A.Z deposition. Interestingly, SWC4 silencing does not affect H2A.Z deposition at the FLC locus nor expression of this gene, a master regulator of flowering previously shown to be controlled by SWR1-C. Importantly, we find that SWC4 recognizes specific AT-rich DNA elements in the chromatin regions of target genes and that SWC4 silencing impairs SWR1-C binding at FT. Collectively, our data suggest that SWC4 regulates plant growth and development by aiding SWR1-C recruitment and modulating H2A.Z deposition.This work was supported by grants BIO2010-15589, BIO2013-43098-R, and BIO2016-77559-R to J.A.J. and M.P., and grant RYC-2013-14689 to P.C. from the Spanish Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (MINECO/FEDER, EU), and Marie Curie FP7-PEOPLE-2011-IEF grant 298790 to P.C. and J.A.J. from the European Commission. The CBGP is a Severo Ochoa Center of Excellence (SEV-2016-0672). The CNIC is supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Economia, Industria y Competitividad and the Pro CNIC Foundation, and is also a Severo Ochoa Center of Excellence (SEV-2015-0505).S

Circulating Tumor Cells Enumeration from the Portal Vein for Risk Stratification in Early Pancreatic Cancer Patients

[Simple Summary] Effective biomarkers are needed to enable personalized medicine for pancreatic cancer patients. This study analyzes the prognostic value, in early pancreatic cancer, of circulating tumor cells and clusters from the central venous catheter and portal blood. Circulating tumor cells were isolated using an immunomagnetic selection and were detected by microscopy using immunocytochemistry staining. In conclusion, the circulating tumor cell number in portal blood identifies a death risk in patients with early pancreatic cancer.[Abstract] Background. Effective biomarkers are needed to enable personalized medicine for pancreatic cancer patients. This study analyzes the prognostic value, in early pancreatic cancer, of single circulating tumor cell (CTC) and CTC clusters from the central venous catheter (CVC) and portal blood (PV). Methods. In total, 7 mL of PV and CVC blood from 35 patients with early pancreatic cancer were analyzed. CTC were isolated using a positive immunomagnetic selection. The detection and identification of CTC were performed by immunocytochemistry (ICC) and were analyzed by Epi-fluorescence and confocal microscopy. Results. CTC and the clusters were detected both in PV and CVC. In both samples, the CTC number per cluster was higher in patients with grade three or poorly differentiated tumors (G3) than in patients with well (G1) or moderately (G2) differentiated. Patients with fewer than 185 CTC in PV exhibited a longer OS than patients with more than 185 CTC (24.5 vs. 10.0 months; p = 0.018). Similarly, patients with fewer than 15 clusters in PV showed a longer OS than patients with more than 15 clusters (19 vs. 10 months; p = 0.004). These significant correlations were not observed in CVC analyses. Conclusions. CTC presence in PV could be an important prognostic factor to predict poor prognosis in early pancreatic cancer. In addition, the number of clustered-CTC correlate to a tumor negative differentiation degree and, therefore, could be used as a diagnostic biomarker for pancreatic cancer.This research was funded by Carlos III Health Institute (Health Research Fund) grant number PI16/01465 and PI19/01821 (Co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund “A way to make Europe”)

La coordinación de materias de economía en el Grado de Marketing e Investigación de Mercados

El objetivo del proyecto es conocer la posible existencia de solapamiento de los contenidos de las diversas asignaturas de economía que imparte el departamento de Economía e Historia Económica en el grado de Marketing y evaluar el grado de satisfacción del alumno con la metodología utilizada a fin de mejorar la misma. Para ello, se ha realizado una encuesta de elaboración propia a los alumnos matriculados entre los cursos académicos 2004-05 y 2008-09. Los resultados obtenidos nos permiten descartar un excesivo solapamiento de contenidos, tan solo el 10,6% de la muestra manifestó dicha opción, y para el 43,6% de los preguntados los contenidos de las asignaturas resultan complementarios. En cuanto a la metodología docente aunque no parece distar de la adecuada en función de las respuestas, un 60% considera que debería combinar las clases magistrales del profesor, con la preparación y posterior exposición por parte de los alumnos de contenidos teóricos y prácticos de las asignaturas .Sí manifiestan una excesiva carga teórica que dificulta en ocasiones la comprensión de las materias. En cuanto a la motivación del alumnado a partir del trabajo de los profesores, la respuesta supera una media de 3 en la escala de Likert, lo cual implica que no hay una clara desmotivación, aunque es susceptible de mejora al no encontraese con una media de 4.The goal of this research is to determine if there exist overlapping contents among the different subjects of economics given by Economics and Economic History Department at the Marketing degree. In addition, we try to evaluate the student’s satisfaction with the methodology applied in the different subjects in the past, in order to improve it. To achieve these goals, we have carried out our own survey to the students along the academic years between 2004/2005 and 2008/2009. The main results can be summarised as follows: On the one hand, the existence of excessive common contents can be rejected since only the 10% of the sample suggests that such common contents exist. Moreover, for the 43,6% of the students, the content of the different subjects are complementary. On 94 the other hand, as far as educational methodology is concerned, the answers given in the survey allow us to conclude that in general they have been satisfactory for the students. Nevertheless, more than the 60% of the sample considers that the methodology should combine the traditional lectures with personal work and later exposition of theoretical and practical contents of subjects by the students. Furthermore, students suggest that theoretical contents are excessive in comparison with the practical ones which can be an obstacle to understand the subjects. Concerning students’ motivation, on average the answer is over 3 in the Likert scale, which implies that, although there is not discouragement in relation to the subjects given by the Department, improvements can be done in this area